East Palo Alto outreach leader shot to death

CRIME Outreach leader slain at Hillsdale mall

Published 4:00 am, Friday, June 11, 2010

Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle

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Cassandra Julian, (left) an alumni of the "Free at Last" program and now an employee, along with Cheryl Smothers, the director of the residential program, on Thursday June 10, 2010, in East Palo Alto, Ca., grieve the loss of David Lewis, an ex-convict who built the respected community outreach center, "Free At Last" in East Palo Alto for parolees, addicts and others. Lewis was shot to death Wednesday evening at the Hillsdale Shopping Center garage in San Mateo. less

Cassandra Julian, (left) an alumni of the "Free at Last" program and now an employee, along with Cheryl Smothers, the director of the residential program, on Thursday June 10, 2010, in East Palo Alto, Ca., ... more

Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle

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David Lewis, an ex-convict who built a respected community outreach center, Free At Last, in East Palo Alto for parolees, addicts and others was shot to death at the Hillsdale Shopping Center garage in San Mateo. less

David Lewis, an ex-convict who built a respected community outreach center, Free At Last, in East Palo Alto for parolees, addicts and others was shot to death at the Hillsdale Shopping Center garage in San ... more

Photo: Ken Paul Rosenthal

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Alvin Hall, the transitional housing manager of "Free at Last", embraces Vicki Smothers, a co-founder of the program, on Thursday June 10, 2010, in East Palo Alto, Ca., as they grieve the loss of David Lewis, an ex-convict who built the respected community outreach center, "Free At Last" in East Palo Alto for parolees, addicts and others. Lewis was shot to death Wednesday evening at the Hillsdale Shopping Center garage in San Mateo. less

Alvin Hall, the transitional housing manager of "Free at Last", embraces Vicki Smothers, a co-founder of the program, on Thursday June 10, 2010, in East Palo Alto, Ca., as they grieve the loss of David Lewis, ... more

Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle

East Palo Alto outreach leader shot to death

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David Lewis dedicated his life to helping people in East Palo Alto recover from substance abuse and imprisonment. He could often be found counseling people in the city's most dangerous streets, working with police and clergy to call for cease-fires in hopes of stemming the bloodshed.

Now, Lewis has fallen victim to violence himself.

Lewis, 54, was shot once in a garage on the west side of the Hillsdale Shopping Center in San Mateo at about 5:45 p.m. Wednesday, near his 2001 Honda Accord, authorities said. The Palo Alto resident was pronounced dead at a local hospital.

No arrests have been made in the slaying, San Mateo's first homicide this year. A black sedan was spotted leaving the scene and could be connected to the case, Police Chief Susan Manheimer said at a news conference Thursday.

Manheimer said the slaying was an isolated incident, but did not elaborate. A motive for the killing hasn't been established, she said.

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Police are investigating a wide range of theories for what led to the killing, from a chance encounter with someone Lewis knew to a case of road rage to "something (that was) more involved and had longer tentacles to it, if you will," Manheimer said.

Investigators are seeking tips from the public to help separate "fact from fiction," she said.

The chief said police have obtained statements from witnesses and video from surveillance cameras positioned throughout the mall.

Lewis was "fearless in what he did," counseling drug addicts and parolees, but police don't know whether there was a connection between his career and the killing, Manheimer said. There is nothing to suggest that Lewis himself was involved in any criminal activity, she said.

According to an online biography, Lewis dropped out of school, became involved in gangs and drugs and was sent to prison when he was 19. Lewis remade himself into a counselor and devoted himself to community-based drug, alcohol and violence-prevention programs.

The father of four founded Free at Last, a substance abuse treatment program in East Palo Alto, shortly after the city's per-capita homicide rate hit a national high in 1992.

Lewis also spearheaded a program for East Palo Alto residents returning to the community from prison. The program, run by the Police Department and funded by the state, provides life-skills training and temporary highway-cleaning jobs with Caltrans.

Vicki Smothers, 59, of East Palo Alto, a spokeswoman for the Lewis family and co-founder of Free at Last, said her friend of 42 years "was just one of those people who was a magnet of people."

Zoe Wigfall, 51, of East Palo Alto said Lewis wouldn't take no for an answer as he urged her to come to Free at Last when she was addicted to drugs and raising a young son while pregnant with a daughter, who is now 14.

"Not only did he care for me, David cared for this community," Wigfall said. "He did nothing but try to help people in this community, and it was real special to me that he cared enough to keep coming back until I surrendered."

Wigfall said Lewis would tell people, "Don't take nothing, just keep going." Callers to Lewis' phone hear this message: "Don't take nothing, no matter what."

East Palo Alto Police Chief Ron Davis said, "He was a stellar person in the community. He worked hard. He wasn't without fault - he would be the first to tell you that. But to change that into something positive for the community is what I think his legacy will be."

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